


Markings On Your Skin

by wordsareleftbehind (froggydarren)



Series: Ink [1]
Category: Glee RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-17
Updated: 2013-11-17
Packaged: 2018-01-01 21:54:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1049015
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/froggydarren/pseuds/wordsareleftbehind
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>When Chris comes home after shooting the scene with Kurt's tattoo and forgets to wash off the mark beforehand, it makes Darren's mind wander to how Chris' skin would look with permanent ink. (sort of a follow up to <a href="http://archiveofourown.org/works/882076">Get a Tattoo</a>, but can be read separately. Also, prequel of sorts to <a href="http://wordsareleftbehind.tumblr.com/post/32292876320">this</a>. aka now the Ink verse)</em>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Markings On Your Skin

“Please don’t talk to me, I just want to pass out and _die_ ,” Chris states the moment he walks into the living room.

He’s met with a curious glance from Darren, who’s stretched out on the couch, Brian pawing at his T-shirt because Darren has the laser pointer in hand.

“What are you doing to the cat?” Chris asks when the scene in front of his eyes registers in his over-tired brain.

“We were bored,” Darren shrugs while getting Brian off the couch by pointing the laser to the side, “Well, I was bored and he was willing to play along. Also, his claws are sort of nice when he’s scratching through the T-shirt.”

“You are a strange man,” Chris shakes his head, chuckling, “And I think Brian will be annoyed if you don’t keep up the game now.”

“He’ll deal,” Darren says as he puts away the laser pointer, “I’ve someone else to take care of.”

“Oh, is Chord visiting?”

The death glare in Darren’s face has little heat to it, but Chris still pretends to defend himself. But when he lifts his hands up, he can’t help but wince.

“Sore?” Darren asks unnecessarily, “Would you like a massage?”

He knows that Chris was up most of the night before writing another chapter of his book, thinking that he’d had a late call in the morning. But that changed and he was on set all day, shooting an extra scene besides the ones he had scheduled.

“Please yes thank you,” Chris blurts out and lets Darren lead him into the bedroom.

“Come on, I’ll get this,” Darren offers and reaches for the buttons on Chris’ shirt, removing them mechanically, unlike other times when he’s trying to get that to lead somewhere else.

Now, though, his plans only include making Chris feel better and taking the edge off his back ache.

“You know, I’m still a little put off that I wasn’t allowed on set for that scene,” Darren smirks when he shrugs off Chris’ shirt, “I mean, it’s not like I’d have seen something I haven’t already.”

“Which not _everyone_ knows, despite your blabbermouth,” Chris rolls his eyes at Darren’s attempt to look offended and disappointed, “Plus, you get to see me shirtless off set, why would you need to see me like that _on_ set too?”

“The fact that I’d need to explain that makes me very disappointed, Christopher,” Darren laughs, “I’ll tell you all about it when you’re not about to pass out. Now, on the bed with you.”

“Yes, sir,” Chris tries to salute but cringes again when the pain in his muscles increases.

“Just lie down, you,” Darren frowns, “Let me make it go away.”

Chris gives in and climbs on top of the bed slowly, then stretches out, wincing again at the pain in his back. He’s more annoyed than he normally would be because he’s aware that it’s self-inflicted and he really shouldn’t have stayed at his laptop for that long without a break. For a moment, he wants to blame Darren, but he immediately hushes the little voice in his head. Darren was asleep when Chris decided to get up and type furiously before the idea for a plot point escaped his mind. Darren was in no position to get Chris to stop and get back into bed. Darren also wasn’t the one waking Chris up at seven in the morning, telling him to get on set because of a scene that needed to be re-shot.

Meanwhile, Darren has ducked out of the room to get the massage oil that he’s taken to keeping in their bathroom, especially for days like this. It’s not only one of them, there are times when Chris is the one offering a massage after Darren’s rehearsals have gone a little too crazy - which, given Darren’s ‘dedication to character’ isn’t a rare thing. He walks back into the bedroom with the small bottle in hand, trying to warm it up before he gets to Chris and stops in the middle of the room. The sight of Chris never stops taking his breath away, regardless of how many times he’s seen him shirtless. He can only imagine what the viewers are in for when the scenes of Chris taking his top off will finally air.

The chuckle that starts escaping from his mouth dies down the moment Darren’s eyes find the small black marking on Chris’ back, though. Sure, they’ve talked about tattoos, even before they were given the script with the scene of Kurt getting one. Darren still distinctly remembers the discussion of their bucket lists and how he made a demonstration for Chris of how ink would look on the pale skin. He also immediately recalls what that discussion had led to.

“Fuck,” he breathes out and freezes.

But Chris hasn’t heard him, it seems, since he doesn’t react in the slightest to the exclamation from Darren’s lips. Breathing out in relief, Darren walks over to the bed and kneels at the side, uncapping the oil and dripping some of it out on his fingers, still trying to warm it up.

“Sorry about the coldness,” he says when he brings his hands on Chris’ skin and spreads the slick liquid over the lower part of Chris’ back first.

“‘s okay,” Chris mumbles into the pillow he’s pulled under his chin and Darren already feels him relaxing, “feels good already.”

“Good,” Darren smiles, “that’s sort of the point. Try and relax a little? I won’t mind if you fall asleep.”

“‘m not falling ‘sleep,” Chris tries to reply but the sound is muffled by the pillow and slurred enough for Darren to know that Chris is not far from nodding off for at least a little bit.

He doesn’t comment on it, instead digs his fingers into Chris’ muscles and with the knowledge he has from previous times, looks for the knots that always seem to come back. He hears Chris humming in relief and occasionally hiss when Darren hits a particularly painful spot, but slowly, Chris’ breathing evens out. Darren doesn’t stop, though, his hands moving across Chris’ body with practiced moves, eventually shifting higher. He doesn’t hesitate until he reaches Chris’ shoulder blade and his eyes lock on the tiny writing in black ink.

It’s only make-up, Darren is aware of that consciously, but it doesn’t stop him from running a finger over it, partly amazed by how true-to-life the tattoo’s impression of being freshly done is, partly fascinated by how ink looks on Chris’ skin.

“‘s up,” comes muffled from the pillow under Chris’ face and Darren jumps, realizing that he’s been staring for a while.

“Nothing, nothing, just…” he doesn’t quite know how to explain away that he’s stopped, since that’s obviously what pulled Chris out of his almost sleep.

“‘s just make-up,” Chris says quietly and Darren blushes at how easily he’s been caught.

“I know, but it’s…” his voice fades out, unsure how to word what’s in his mind when he sees the tattoo.

“I thought of the time we tried the temporary ones,” Chris says instead, making Darren open his eyes wide, “when they were putting it on. It was… different when it was you.”

Darren gulps, his mind drifting to when he put the small clover picture on Chris’ hip and what it made him think and _do_ at the time. How doing _one_ thing off of Chris’ bucket list led to crossing things out from Darren’s. Things that he hadn’t even known until then that he had on his list. Chris looks at Darren over his shoulder and smiles.

“Does that mean that if I learn how to do a real tattoo,” Darren smirks, “You’d let me put one on you?”

“Only if you get a matching one,” Chris raises his eyebrow, “Designs of course would have to be pre-approved. Also, placement. I wouldn’t just let you tattoo your name across my ass.”

“Language, Christopher,” Darren laughs, but the idea of Chris with a real tattoo has taken over his brain.

Even more so when he thinks of being the one putting the ink on the skin, finding the right picture and the right place.

“Here,” he whispers then, running his thumb just under Chris’ neck, towards his shoulder, “I’d put it right here and have it be notes from a song of your choosing. Or words you’d pick. Just, in handwriting and light, barely visible or readable to anyone but those who’d look close enough.”

Darren’s touch makes Chris shiver for more reasons than the contact itself. He thinks of Darren taking the tattoo needle to his skin, of Darren looking at him as he’d put the permanent mark on. It makes Chris wonder where he’d choose to put a mark on Darren. It’s not long before an idea crosses his mind. He turns around and faces Darren, then grabs his arm and pulls it off Darren’s side. He runs a finger down from Darren’s ribs.

“I’d put one here. Same thing, though, words or notes of a song,” he says quietly and meets Darren’s eyes.

“Both,” Darren smiles in reply, “I’d want the notes to _Teenage Dream_ and ‘ _a villain is just a victim whose story hasn't been told_ ’.”

Chris freezes and stares at Darren, his fingers digging into the flesh just above Darren’s waist.

“I was thinking of _Words_ ,” he breathes out, “Or _Not Alone_ , if I went the cliche direction.”

“Chris…”

“They’re our songs and your words and if I wanted something on my skin permanently, it would be _you_.”

Darren’s eyes sting as tears pool in them and moments later he can’t hold back anymore. He leans in and presses his lips into Chris’, tears now freely falling out of his eyes.

“I’d love that,” he says when he pulls away and reaches for Chris’ hand, “You’re already under my skin, you know? It would just be a nice reminder.”

Chris smiles and clutches to Darren’s hand, the promise of ‘soon’ and ‘forever’ in their eyes.

 


End file.
